Filament reinforced fiberboard for boxes

ABSTRACT

A fiber-reinforced fiberboard in which long fiber filaments are incorporated with the usual fiberboard components, loose fiber filaments being adhered to the paper facing or fiber fabric being adhered to the paper facing. This is done with either or both of the facings.

United States Patent [191 Neubauer Sept. 9, 1975 [54] FILAMENT REINFORCED FIBERBOARD 3,573,144 3/1971 Andersen 161/69 3,632,791 H1972 Rupprecht et a1. 161/93 3,658,612 4/1972 Corzine 161/69 [76] Inventor: John P. Neubauer, 36 Boxwood 3,734,990 5 1973 Glesner et a1..... l61/DIG. 4 Cir., Bryans Road, Md. 20616 3,819,466 4/1974 Winfield et a1. 161/137 [22] Filed: Mar. 18, 1974 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS No: 648,213 9/1962 Canada 161/133 Primary Examiner-William J. Van Balen [52] US. Cl. 428/186; 156/210; 428/182; Assistant Examiner paul Thibodeau 428/293 Attorney, Agent, or Firm-R. S. Sciascia; P. Schneider [51] Int. Cl. B32B l/00; B31F H20 [58] Field of Search 161/93, 69, 133, 135, 137,

161/151, 156, 175, 176, 270; 156/210, 62.2; [57] ABSTRA CT 1 1 33 A fiber-reinforced fiberboard in which long fiber filaments are incorporated with the usual fiberboard com- [56] References Cited ponents, loose fiber filaments being adhered to the UNITED STATES PATENTS paper facing or fiber fabric being adhered to the paper facing. This is done with either or both of the facings. 3,193,439 7/1965 Price et al 161/93 I 3,404,748 10/1968 Bjorksten 161/133 2 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures Loose FIBER MATERIAL FORE 22 CORRUGATED PAPER FACING MED'A AFT ROLLER PAPER FACING 2O ROLLER COMEgSITE FIBERBOARD PATENTIZDSEP 9I9I5 3, 904,800

LOOsE FIBER MATERIAL FORE 22 CORRUGATED PAPER FACING MED'A R AFT ROLLER PAPER FACING 20 ROLLER COMPOSITE FIBERBOARD LONG FIBER [6 LONG FIBER PAPER FACING PAPER FACING FABRIC ROLLER ROLLER ROLLER FABRIC ROLLER I8 I I I 'yvvv v COM POSITE REINFORCED FIBERBOARD FILAMENT REINFORCED FIBERBOARD FOR BOXES BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to the reinforcement of fiberboard and especially to the making of strengthened fiberboard for cartons or boxes.

Present fiberboard boxes are generally weak at the edges. The fiberboard is manufactured by laminating together with adhesives various thickness of paper, one of which is usually corrugated. Box blanks are cut from the fiberboard and the board is creased where the blank is to be folded to form a box. Creasing crushes the fiberboard so that the box is weakest at the edges. To provide additional strength, the boxes are often reinforced with tape at the edges.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention comprises fiberboard to which long fiber filaments, or material containing such filaments, are added during its manufacture. The long fiber filaments add strength in all directions to the fiberboard, thereby alleviating the usual weakening effect of folding or creasing.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION An object of the invention is to add strength to fiberboard.

A further object is to strengthen fiberboard in all directions so that the weakening effect of folding or creasing the fiberboard is diminished.

Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an illustration of direct lamination of loose fibers to the paper facing of the fiberboard.

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of the incorporation of fabric containing the long fibers.

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration of the manufacture of a doubly reinforced fiberboard, Fig. 3a showing the making of the reinforced paper facing and Fig. 3b showing the making of the fiberboard.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The usual fiberboard which is used to make boxes has a corrugated paper between two paper facings l2 and 14 to which it is attached by some adhesive like glue. The corrugated paper 10 is rolled off a corrugated media roller 16. The top paper facing 12 is rolled off a roller 18, the location of which is after the corrugated media roller 16 and which, therefore, will be labelled after paper facing roller. The bottom paper facing 14 is rolled off a roller 20, the location of which is before the corrugated media roller 16 and which, therefore,

will be labelled the fore paper facing roller.

Loose fibers 22, which may be of natural or synthetic material such as glass, rayon, nylon, plastic, etc., are allowed to drop from a slit in the bottom of a holder 24 which may have a roughly triangular cross-section, for example. The fibers should be at least l/4% in length and the longer the fibers are, the better will be their reinforcing strength. In general, the fiber filaments will be randomly oriented on the paper facing.

The adhesive dispenser 26 should preferably be lo cated just before the fiber holder 24 so that the fibers 22 may drop onto the adhesive-coated paper 14.

Although it is not shown, there is another adhesive dispenser which coats the top paper facing 12 on the side which contacts the corrugated paper 10. The composite fiberboard 28 thus has the following layers, disregarding the adhesive:

top paper facing corrugated paper bottom paper facing.

Fig. 2 shows a second embodiment which utilizes material which is fibrous in nature and which shall be called fiber fabric 30. The fabric may be spun glass, nylon, rayon, etc. The fiber fabric, upper 30 and lower 32, is adhered to the bottom of the upper paper facing 12 and to the top of the lower paper facing 14. The corrugated paper 10 is placed between the two fabric layers 30 and 32 and is adhered thereto. The composite'fiberboard 30 has the following layers, disregarding the adhesive:

top paper facing top fiber fabric corrugated paper bottom fiber fabric bottom paper facing.

Of course, it is obvious that the fiber fabric layers may be adhered to the outside of the paper facings, or that one may be outside and one inside.

Fig. 3 shows another method of making the composite fiberboard 38 of Fig. 2. Here the composite is made in two steps. The first comprises adhering the fiber fabric sheet to the paper facing and placing the fabricpaper sheet on a roller 40. A second roller 40' is loaded the same way. Of course, the paper facing roller 20 may be interchanged with the fabric roller 36, if desired.

The corrugated paper roller 16 is placed between two rollers 40 and 40 which have the adhered paper and fabric layers. The corrugated paper is then adhered between the other layers to form the composite fiberboard 38 like the one in the embodiment of Fig. 2.

Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

What is claimed is:

1. The improvement in the process of making ordinary fiberboard of the type in which a corrugated paper is placed between an upper and a lower paper facing and adhered to both, comprising the step of dispensing from a loose mass individual loose randomly oriented long fiber filaments which are adhered to the inner side of at least one of said paper facings.

2. The product made according to the process of claim 1. 

1. THE IMPROVEMENT IN THE PROCESS OF MAKING ORDINARY FIBERBOARD OF THE TYPE IN WHICH A CORRUGATED PAPER IS PLACED BETWEEN AN UPPER AND A LOWER PAPER FACING AND ADHERED TO BOTH, COMPRISING THE STEP OF DISPENSING FROM A LOOSE MASS INDIVIDUAL LOOSE RADOMLY ORIENTED LONG FIBER FILAMENTS WHICH ARE ADHERED TO THE INNER SIDE OF AT LEAST ONE SAID PAPER FACINGS.
 2. The product made according to the process of claim
 1. 